Tigers to Close Out Regular Season at Wichita State

Thursday, April 30

Wichita, Kan.

6 p.m.

University of Memphis

Wichita State

Tigers to Close Out Regular Season at Wichita State

Apr 29, 2026 | Softball

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis softball team wraps up the regular season on the road with a series against the Wichita State Shockers, who are 11-1 in their last 12 conference games.

Game times are set for 6 p.m., 6 p.m. and noon on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, respectively. All times listed are central and all games will be broadcast on ESPN+.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS

Memphis (18-35, 6-18 American) is looking to close the season out with momentum after securing its first-ever win over Florida Atlantic in stunning fashion on a walk-off, two-run home run by Taylor Caton.

Through the latter stage of the season, Ariel Davis has regained her form from the first month, currently leading the Tigers in batting average (.387), OPS (1.126), hits (55), runs (33), doubles (11) and walks (20), most recently being named a weekly honorable mention by the American Conference on Monday. Faith Brown has struggled as of late but is still Memphis' leader in home runs (8) and RBI (37), with her 37 RBI being tied for the fourth-most by a Tiger in single-season history. The pair have contributed to a Memphis offense with top-10 single-season marks in nearly every offensive statistic.

Avery Stutts has continued her strong freshman campaign, picking up her seventh win of the season in Memphis' walk-off win over Florida Atlantic. She leads the Tigers in ERA (5.48), innings pitched (107.1), strikeouts (51) and saves (2). Behind Stutts, Mya Clark and Taylor Caton sit around or just above 50 innings pitched on the year with 20 and 39 strikeouts, respectively, while Rylee Dugar and Taniyah Brown have sub-4.00 ERAs in limited usage this season.

SCOUTING THE SHOCKERS

Wichita State (32-16, 18-6 American) enters the series after falling 10-0 in five innings at Kansas on Tuesday.

The Shockers boast one of the best offenses in the American in 2026, led by the duo of Ausha Moore and Kinzey Woody. Moore, a transfer from North Texas, has exploded for 20 home runs and 51 RBI in her sophomore campaign, while also leading Wichita State in batting average and runs scored. Woody, a Missouri native, is one of the top freshmen in the country, currently hitting over the .350 mark with 24 extra-base hits and 46 RBI. For her efforts in her first collegiate season, Woody was named to the NFCA Freshman of the Year Top 25 Watchlist last week.

In the circle, sophomore Ryley Nihart has tossed just under half of Wichita State's innings, currently sitting at 15-10 through 153 innings with 84 strikeouts. Ava Sliger and Jade Sanders have worked as supplemental arms behind Nihart, tossing 72.2 and 60.1 innings, respectively. Sanders was named the American Conference Pitcher of the Week on Monday after tossing 7.2 scoreless innings on the weekend against North Texas, earning one win.

SERIES HISTORY VS. WICHITA STATE

Memphis is currently 4-21 in all contests against the Shockers dating back to 2010. Last season, Wichita took the series, 2-1, also during the final weekend of the regular season. It was also the lowest run total allowed by Memphis (12) in a series against Wichita State in program history.

During last season's series in Memphis, the Tigers snapped a 17-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory. Ariel Davis and Marley Maness are the only Tigers on this season's team with a hit in that win.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS

For complete information on Memphis Tigers Softball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram , and Facebook.